Free Life Cells: Play Conway's Game of Life Online
Free, no sign-up, works in your browser. Draw living cells on a grid and watch them grow, die and travel by the simple rules of Conway's Game of Life. Stamp classic patterns like the glider, spaceships and the glider gun, try other rules, and zoom in on the action.
Life Cells
Every cell lives or dies by its eight neighbours. Draw some cells or stamp a pattern, then press Play and watch them grow.
Conway's Game of Life: a live cell with 2 or 3 live neighbours stays alive, a dead cell with exactly 3 comes to life, and every other cell dies or stays empty. Change the rule to see other worlds.
Space plays or pauses, S steps, + and − zoom, arrows move the view, R rotates the pattern. Two fingers pan and zoom on touch screens.
The game runs on your device. Your games and settings are saved in this browser; sign in to keep your progress everywhere.
Why play Life Cells here
- 100% free
- Play as much as you like. No account, no money, nothing to install.
- Private by design
- The game runs in your browser. Nothing to download.
- Works on any device
- Runs in your browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iPhone. No app needed.
How to play Life Cells
- Press Start to watch the opening patterns, or Pause and draw your own cells with the mouse or a finger.
- Pick a pattern, rotate or flip it, and click the grid to stamp it.
- Use Play, Pause and Step, and change the speed to watch generation by generation.
- Zoom with + and −, move around with the Move tool, arrow keys or two fingers, and try other rules.
Frequently asked questions
- What are the rules?
- Each cell has eight neighbours. A live cell with two or three live neighbours survives; a dead cell with exactly three comes to life; every other cell dies or stays empty. All cells change at once, one generation at a time.
- What does B3/S23 mean?
- B lists the neighbour counts that bring a dead cell to life and S the counts that keep a live cell alive. B3/S23 is the classic rule; try HighLife (B36/S23), Seeds (B2/S) or Day & Night (B3678/S34678), or type your own.
- What happens at the edges?
- With Wrap around, cells leaving one side come back on the other. With Walls, everything outside the grid counts as dead.
- Can I play on a phone?
- Yes. Draw with a finger, tap to stamp a pattern, and pinch or drag with two fingers to zoom and move.
- Is anything saved?
- Your speed and edge settings are kept in this browser on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.
- Is Life Cells free?
- Yes. It's free to use, with no sign-up and nothing to install.
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